Hofgesang



March 17, 1964 w. HOFGESANG SEWING MACHINE CARRYING CASE WITH HINGED DROP PANEL Filed May 14, 1962 INVENTOR. William Hofgesang BY W ATTORNE Y WI TN E53 United States Patent 3,124,895 SEWHNG MACHINE CARRYFNG CASE WITH HINGED ERG? PANEL William Hofgesang, Avenel, N1, assigaor to The Singer Company, a corporation of New Jersey Filed May 14, 1962, Ser. No. 194,567 4 Claims. (1. 45-682) This invention relates to sewing machine carrying cases and more particularly to the base member of a plastic carrying case, the base member of which is equipped with a hinged plastic drop panel and one of the objects of the present invention is to provide an improved device of this character.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved means for attaching a hinge to the base member of a plastic carrying case.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a metallic hinge that can easily be secured to the plastic base of a sewing machine carrying care and to a plastic drop panel.

With the above and other objects in view, as will hereinafter appear, the invention comprises the devices, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter set forth and illustrated in the accompanying drawings of a preferred embodiment of the invention, from which the several features of the invention and the advantages attained thereby, will be readily understood by those skilled in the art.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a portion of a plastic carrying case equipped with a metallic hinge and plastic drop panel embodying the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating portions of the carrying case of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken through one of the hinges of the carrying case shown in FIGS. 1 and 2,

FIG. 4 is an inverted exploded perspective View illustrating an inside portion of the plastic carrying case and hinge arrangement.

The drawings, which form a part of this specification, illustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention as applied to a plastic carrying case base member 16 having a work supporting surface wall 17 apertured as at 18 to receive the bed 19 of a sewing machine 21. The base member 16, in addition to the wall 17, is formed with a depending front wall 22, a depending end wall 23, a depending rear wall 24, and a depending partition wall 26. The sewing machine 21, in a known but unshown manner, is secured to the base member 16, and when the sewing machine 21 is not in use the sewing machine 21 and the complete base member 16 may be covered with a plastic cover member (not shown).

In order to provide the bed 19 and the wall 17 with an additional work supporting surface, the base member 16 is equipped with a drop panel 31 which by means of identical hinges 32 and 33 may be moved from the lowered position shown by solid lines in FIGS. 1 and 3 to the raised position shown by dash-dash lines of the same FIGS. 1 and 3.

Because both hinges 32 and 33 are identical only hinge 32 will be described in detail and this hinge comprises a fixed leaf 34, a movable leaf 36, and a pivot pin 37 which pivotally mounts the leaf 36 on the leaf 34. The drop panel 31 is secured to the movable leaf 36 by means of two screws 38-38 which pass through holes in the leaf 36 and enter holes in a web 39 formed integral with the drop panel 31. The movable leaf 36 is L-shaped to form a shoulder 35 and the enlarged end of the leaf 36 has a slightly bias cut ed e 46 the purpose of which will be discussed later.

The fixed leaf 34 is made of spring steel and has a vertical end plate 41. One edge of the plate 41 is formed integral with one edge of a vertical center plate 42. The lower edge (remembering that FIG. 4 is inverted) of plate 42 is formed integral with one edge of a bottom plate 43 and the opposite edge of the bottom plate 43 is formed integral with the bottom edge of a vertical H- shaped plate 44 and opposite ends of the lower leg of the plate 44 are formed with bent out spring prongs 4748. In like manner, the other edge of the plate 41 is formed integral with one edge of a vertical center plate 52. The lower edge (remembering that FIG. 4 is in verted) of plate 52 is formed integral with one end of a bottom plate 53 and the opposite edge of the bottom plate 53 is formed integral with the bottom edge of a vertical H-shaped plate 54 and opposite ends of the lower leg of the plate 54 are formed with bent out spring prongs 57 and 58.

Inside of the carrying case base member 16 there is (for each hinge) formed, adjacent to the junction of walls 17 and 23, a plastic projection 60 having three cavities, namely, a central cavity 61 and two outside cavities 64 and '74. The end wall 23 and the work supporting wall 17 are provided with communicating apertures S3 and 87 respectively and both of the apertures 83 and 67 are in communication with the central cavity 61.

The herein described elements are assembled in the following manner. First the base member 16 is inverted or turned upside down in the manner shown in FIG. 4, and by use of the pivot pin 37, the movable leaf $6 is connected to the fixed leaf 34. Then the parts are held in the position shown in FIG. 4 and the leaf 36 is moved into the cavity 61 until finally the vertical end plate 41 and the vertical center plates 42 and 52 are pushed into the cavity 61. At the same time the H-shaped plate 44 and its prongs 47-48 enter the cavity 64. Also the H-shaped plate 54 and its prongs 5758 enter the cavity 74. Because the prongs 4748 and 57-58 springingly engage the inside walls of the cavities 64 and 74 the fixed leaf is firmly held to the plastic projection 60. Then the two leaves 36 of the hinges 32 and 33 are attached to the drop panel 31 by use of screws 38.

In operation the drop panel 31 can be swung to the raised dash-dash position shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 or can be swung to the lowered solid line position shown in the same figures. Movement of the leaf 36 is limited (FIG. 3) in the lowered solid line position by reason of the edge 41 engaging the inside surface of the plate 41. Movement of the leaf 36 is limited in the raised dash-dash position (FIG. 3) by reason of the edge 40 engaging the upper edge of the plate 41.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what I claim herein is:

1. In combination a plastic carrying case, a drop panel and a hinge for movingly connecting said :drop panel to said carrying case, said carrying case having an apertured work supporting wall, an apertured end wall, and a three-cavity projection formed adjacent to the junction of the work supporting wall and said end wall, one of the cavities in the three-cavity projection communicating with the apertures in the work supporting wall and the end wall, said hinge having a fixed leaf, a movable leaf and a pivot pin for swinging said movable leaf on said fixed leaf, said fixed leaf having a portion thereof positioned in one of the said cavities and having other portions thereof positioned in the other of said cavities.

2. In combination a plastic carrying case, a drop panel and a hinge for movingly connecting said drop panel to said carrying case, said carrying case having an apertured work supporting wall, an apertured end wall, and a threecavity projection formed adjacent to the junction of the work supporting wall and said end wall, one of the cavities in the three-cavity projection communicating with the apertures in the work supporting wall and the end wall, said hinge having a fixed leaf, a movable leaf and a pivot pin for swinging said movable leaf on said fixed leaf, said fixed leaf having a pair of H-shaped pronged plates, said H-shaped pronged plates being received in cavities of the plastic projection; and means for connecting said drop panel to said movable leaf.

3. In combination a plastic carrying case, a drop panel and a hinge for movingly connecting said drop panel to said carrying case, said carrying case having an apertured work supporting wall, an apertured end wall, and a threecavity projection formed adjacent to the junction of the work supporting wall and said end wall, one of the cavities in the three-cavity projection communicating with the apertures in the work supporting wall and the end wall, said hinge having a fixed leaf, a movable leaf and a pivot pin for swinging said movable leaf on said fixed leaf, said fixed leaf having a vertical end plate, a pair of vertical center plates formed integral with opposite edges of said end plate, a pair of end plates each respectively being connected to said two vertical center plates, and a pair of H-shaped pronged plates one being connected to each of said end plates, said vertical end plate, said two center plates and a portion of said movable hinge being received in one of the cavities of said plastic projection and said Hshaped pronged plates each being received in one of the other cavities of the plastic projection; and means for connecting said drop panel to said movable leaf.

4. In combination a molded plastic carrying case base, a drop panel and a hinge :for movingly connecting said drop panel to said carrying case base, said carrying case base having an apertured horizontal work supporting wall, an apertu-red upstanding end wall and a molded projection located adjacent to the junction of said horizontal work supporting Wall and said upstanding end Wall, said projection defining a cavity and said cavity being in communication with the aperture in said horizontal work supporting wall and said cavity also being in communication with the aperture in said upstanding end wall; said hinge having a fixed leaf, a movable leaf and a pivot pin for swinging said movable leaf on said fixed leaf, said fixed leaf being positioned in the cavity formed by said projection, and said movable leaf being secured to said drop panel and swingable from a raised position to a lowered position by moving of said movable leafs in the apertures in said horizontal work supporting wall and in said upstanding end wall.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,917,336 Spitz July 11, 1933 2,720,677 Evans Oct. 18, 1955 2,856,726 Tarle Oct. 21, 1958 

1. IN COMBINATION A PLASTIC CARRYING CASE, A DROP PANEL AND A HINGE FOR MOVINGLY CONNECTING SAID DROP PANEL TO SAID CARRYING CASE, SAID CARRYING CASE HAVING AN APERTURED WORK SUPPORTING WALL, AN APERTURED END WALL, AND A THREE-CAVITY PFOJECTION FORMED ADJACENT TO THE JUNCTION OF THE WORK SUPPORTING WALL AND SAID END WALL, ONE OF THE CAVITIES IN THE THREE-CAVITY PROJECTION COMMUNICATING WITH THE APERTURES IN THE WORK SUPPORTING WALL AND THE END WALL, SAID HINGE HAVING A FIXED LEAF, A MOVABLE LEAF AND A PIVOT PIN FOR SWINGING SAID MOVABLE LEAF ON SAID FIXED LEAF, SAID FIXED LEAF HAVING A PORTION THEREOF POSITIONED IN ONE OF THE SAID CAVITIES AND HAVING OTHER PORTIONS THEREOF POSITIONED IN THE OTHER OF SAID CAVITIES. 